By Harry Kane

A new woodland open space has opened outside of Union Square: Quincy Street Park. It is located between Somerville Avenue and Summer Street.

On a cold afternoon on Jan. 24, Mayor Curtatone opened the Quincy Street Park to the public with a traditional ribbon cutting.

“It’s really a unique space,” said Mayor Curtatone. “And anytime, in the most densely populated city in New England, that we have the opportunity to reclaim space for open or recreation space, and get people out, to move more, to improve the quality of life in the neighborhood. We want to support that.”

The small park is unique, said Arn Franzen, Director of Parks and Open Space. “It is the first truly green park in this city.”

“We’re hoping that we can use this park as a model for future parks,” said Franzen. “Whether it’s a vacant lot or a small piece of property which is not being used and is not suitable for a regular park, we hope that this park can be a model of how the city can approach those properties for reuse.”

Ward 2 Alderman Heuston was instrumental in making sure this renovation happened.

“It looks like a small piece, but believe me, this is a big deal,” said Alderman Heuston.

Some of the features include an elevated boardwalk made of Perennial Wood and original curbstone from Somerville Avenue that was stockpiled and reused to create terraces across the site.

“We wanted to incorporate some new design elements and so rather than putting in the standard city park benches we have these new beautiful Adirondack chairs,” said Franzen. The Adirondack chairs are made of recycled milk jugs.

 ~Video by Harry Kane